Following the team with a unique perspective on all things Phillies.Email me: PhilliesPhollowers@comcast.net – Peace, Love & Baseball – Jenn

Samuel Returns To Philly

The Phillies have hired ex-Phillie Juan Samuel to fill the void left when first base coach Davey Lopes walked after failed contract negotiations.Samuel started his 16-year big league career with the Phillies, playing second base from 1983 to part of 1989.Later in his career, Samuel played both second base and outfield positions and was known as an extremely versatile player.More recently, he coached third base for the Orioles and also served as interim manager when Dave Trembley was fired in June.

Samuel will take over as third base coach and outfield instructor for the Phillies while Sam Perlozzo moves to first base.When asked about returning the Philadelphia, Samuel told reporters, “I couldn’t be happier.I’m ecstatic going back and joining an elite group of players and manager. It’s a dream come true.”Samuel was inducted into the Phillies Wall of Fame in 2008 and has always been a fan favorite.It will be nice to have him back.

In other news, the Phillies have made a small flurry of insignifigant moves in the past week or so.They have signed Pete Orr, 31, to a minor league deal.The infielder has spent much of his baseball career lingering in the minors where he hit .264.

In the catcher category, the Phils re-signed Dane Sardinha who hit .205 in his time with the Phils last year and .207 in the minors.They also picked up Erik Kratz, 30, who hit .274 in the Pirates AAA system.

Continuing to add minor-league pitching, Eddie Bonine, 29, was added as well after spending time in the Tigers bullpen last year.Bonine had a record of 4-1 with a 4.63 ERA in 47 appearances and one start in 2010.His name indicates that he is good at preventing nausea, however, his stats indicate otherwise.Yuck.Well, at least they picked up one guy under 30….barely.

As for Jayson Werth, there is still little news.He and his super-agent Scott Boras are out and about trying to see who is willing to get serious about overpaying the outfielder.The odds of Werth returning to the Phillies lessen as each day passes.But truthfully, the odds may have been close to 1% to begin with.Don’t hold out hope…it is very unlikely that Werth will be back in red pinstripes.

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